When I was a kid in the late 60's, we used to go to a nearby beach called Rio Del Mar. We'd walk over to the "cement ship" and could walk almost to the end of it. As the waves went in and out, it seemed the ship was breathing through the open hatches. The older kids convinced us it was the ghosts of dead passengers. lol... Good times! Btw, in 2017 it took a big hit from a storm and now the part closest to the pier has tipped over.
DR Sudz Thank you for sharing your story, it’s always lovely to hear difference experiences people have had with the ship. Sad, to hear about the part tipping over.
It's now used as a wildlife reserve. A bunch of sea life took it over. I'm pretty certain you're still allowed to fish on the peir but it's catch and release.
@@Mochachocakon I never ate any fish I caught of the cement boat. Some people would... the sewers would overflow often and human waste would spill into the bay from a creek about half a mile south of the peir. The creek runs by Moosehead Drive and Pixie Plaza... if it's still there...
We love to visit the area and watch the sun set there. The waves would hit the bow and the water would come up through holes in the deck like blow holes. Thank you for sharing this video. 🙏
I lived above the ship in '65-'66. I was 3-4yrs. old. My parents walked me to the beach and cement ship often. Pink popcorn from the snack bar and WW2 vets fishing off the ship really stick out in my mind. Anchor tattoos and lots of caught fish....awesome memories! I've heard that the Palo Alto was used during the 20s (prohibition era) for drinking and gambling offshore. Has anyone else heard this story?
The Palo Alto never sailed under her own power. A similar ship, originally named McKittrick and later renamed Monte Carlo, was the one used for prostitution, drinking and gambling offshore. People referred to it as the "sin ship." Opened for business in 1932, originally off Long Beach; moved to international waters off Coronado in 1936. On New Year's Day 1937 during a storm the anchor lost its hold and the ship grounded on a Coronado beach. Parts of the wreckage are occasionally exposed during storm tides.
I remember walking on the cement boat. C. 1967 Where it was split, the gap was like an aquarium, all kinds of fish and such. The Big Rains of 1977-78 made that impossible. Maybe an earlier storm damaged it, not certain but Nov 77 into 78 was a record. I haven't gone to the cement boat since c.1981. I was in Boulder Creek in late 1977 ... San Lorenzo river was up to the top. At the beach there was wood/trees 3-5 feet deep where it enters the ocean, at the Boardwalk. Sand accumulates Every winter 10+ feet but in late 77 it must have around 20 feet deep in sand along the beach from Boardwalk to harbor. I lived very near the Boardwalk Late 77-80. Then the Feb' 1983 and winter of 1994 worked it over. And so on the year 2000 in no way matches the above mentioned rains.
When I was a kid you could walk to the end of the ship and you could go below deck it was magical - so it is sad to see it going going gone even the pier is going -
I was not around when you were able to walk around the ship but I was around when the gate was locked and was able to see the ship from up close before it stared to sink
Thanks for making this! Went out to see it today, the front is now completely sideways since the winter storms
Happy you enjoyed it! Thank you for sharing the update on what it looks like today.
When I was a kid in the late 60's, we used to go to a nearby beach called Rio Del Mar. We'd walk over to the "cement ship" and could walk almost to the end of it. As the waves went in and out, it seemed the ship was breathing through the open hatches. The older kids convinced us it was the ghosts of dead passengers. lol... Good times! Btw, in 2017 it took a big hit from a storm and now the part closest to the pier has tipped over.
DR Sudz Thank you for sharing your story, it’s always lovely to hear difference experiences people have had with the ship. Sad, to hear about the part tipping over.
It's now used as a wildlife reserve. A bunch of sea life took it over. I'm pretty certain you're still allowed to fish on the peir but it's catch and release.
@@Mochachocakon I never ate any fish I caught of the cement boat. Some people would... the sewers would overflow often and human waste would spill into the bay from a creek about half a mile south of the peir. The creek runs by Moosehead Drive and Pixie Plaza... if it's still there...
And now in 2033 another storm has sunk almost all of the rest of it 😥
I remember going onto it in the 60s too. It was a big deal.
We love to visit the area and watch the sun set there. The waves would hit the bow and the water would come up through holes in the deck like blow holes. Thank you for sharing this video. 🙏
I lived above the ship in '65-'66. I was 3-4yrs. old. My parents walked me to the beach and cement ship often. Pink popcorn from the snack bar and WW2 vets fishing off the ship really stick out in my mind. Anchor tattoos and lots of caught fish....awesome memories! I've heard that the Palo Alto was used during the 20s (prohibition era) for drinking and gambling offshore. Has anyone else heard this story?
The Palo Alto never sailed under her own power. A similar ship, originally named McKittrick and later renamed Monte Carlo, was the one used for prostitution, drinking and gambling offshore. People referred to it as the "sin ship." Opened for business in 1932, originally off Long Beach; moved to international waters off Coronado in 1936. On New Year's Day 1937 during a storm the anchor lost its hold and the ship grounded on a Coronado beach. Parts of the wreckage are occasionally exposed during storm tides.
Loved that pink popcorn. Was a popular item at Rinconada pool.
I remember walking on the cement boat. C. 1967 Where it was split, the gap was like an aquarium, all kinds of fish and such. The Big Rains of 1977-78 made that impossible. Maybe an earlier storm damaged it, not certain but Nov 77 into 78 was a record. I haven't gone to the cement boat since c.1981. I was in Boulder Creek in late 1977 ... San Lorenzo river was up to the top. At the beach there was wood/trees 3-5 feet deep where it enters the ocean, at the Boardwalk. Sand accumulates Every winter 10+ feet but in late 77 it must have around 20 feet deep in sand along the beach from Boardwalk to harbor. I lived very near the Boardwalk Late 77-80. Then the Feb' 1983 and winter of 1994 worked it over. And so on the year 2000 in no way matches the above mentioned rains.
When I was a kid you could walk to the end of the ship and you could go below deck it was magical - so it is sad to see it going going gone even the pier is going -
What year was that?
@@sbinsdca 1953/1954. You couldn't explore the whole thing - it has been sad watching it deteriorate
Awesome documentary on this ship!
I was not around when you were able to walk around the ship but I was around when the gate was locked and was able to see the ship from up close before it stared to sink
I was saddened to learn the pier will now be demolished. It makes sense, but there's a lot of memories and history that go with the ship and pier.
How many viewers here had been on the deck of the Palo Alto before it was closed to the public?😎
amazing, thank you
Such a sad story.
1:02 WW1 ended in 1918
recently the stern split and turned over and the pier which goes out to the boat is now closed
I used to fish of it in the 70s. Over the years it got worse and they kept closing sections off. Every once in a while you could see a shark or two...
that's not a boat, it's a ship!
It was not covered over in concrete... lol It was born that way...
When did they close down there like that ballroom and the pool
1931.
like s.s. atlantus
Yes, I'm from Cape May County. The SS Atlantus is all but gone..into the sea
Old world lol not like it was new .